The Girl Next Door By PD Lyons/ Poetry breakfast version

When I remember Third floor windows Tall white lace sails Summer all running in our veins Her mother in the kitchen Making cool aid and plate full of something Cookie sweet to eat

She wanted me to stay I was afraid, wanted to go home But didn’t want her to know Not wanting to be in this house of too many windows Overlooking this mill town valley

But she wanted me to stay Besides the rains begun Going to be a real storm Already rumblings from darkening horizon

And her mother agreed I’ll call your parents. They won’t be worried. You can stay for supper. You like hot dogs don’t you?

And that was how I learned not to be afraid of storms Not to hide from thunder or lightning Frances and her mother, exuberant Ohs and ahs and joy over every Menacing vibration sudden crash Every flash veining skeletal zigzag

PD Lyons has been writing for a long time and hoes to continue to do so even longer. pd lyons work has appeared in mags and zines in North America and Europe and beyond. Two collections of poetry have been published by Lapwing Publishing Belfast. Please visit pdlyons blog for poetry publishing info and new releases: https://pdlyons.wordpress.com/

This is a true story of my learning about thunder and lightening. when i was 4 or 5 years old. my best friends were Christopher and Frances. Frances and her family lived on the third floor of one of those purpose built three family houses you can still find in Waterbury and many other New England towns. I was very glad that Poetry Breakfast chose to publish a little snip of my childhood. The editor Isabel Sylvan Kestner, is now pursuing her own artistic endeavours and you can check out her work here: